Abstract
This paper was focused on the wear characteristics of ion-nitrided metal and with ion-nitride processing, which is basically concerned with the effects of carbon content in workpiece and added carbon content gas atmosphere on the best wear performance. Increased carbon content in workpiece increases compound layer thickness, but decreases diffusion layer thickness. On the other hand, a small optimal amount of carbon content in gas atmosphere increase compound layer thickness as well as diffusion layer thickness and hardness. Wear tests show that the compound layer of ion-nitrided metal reduces wear rate when the applied wear load is small. However, as the load becomes large, the existence of compound layer tends to increase wear rate. Compressive residual stress at the compound layer is the largest at the compound layer, and decreases as the depth from the surface increases. It is found in the analysis that under small applied load, the critical depth where voids and cracks may be created and propagated is located at the compound layer, so that the adhesive wear is created and the existence of compound layer reduces the amount of wear. When the load becomes large, the critical depth is located below the compound layer and delamination, which may explained by surface deformation, crack nucleation and propagation, is created and the existence of compound layer increases wear rate. For the compound layer, at added carbon contents of 0 percent and 0.5 at. percent, the $\varepsilon$ monophase is predominant. But at 0.7 at. percent added carbon, the $\varepsilon$ monophase formation tends to be severely inhibited and r' and $Fe_3C$ polyphase formation becomes dominant. This increased hard $\varepsilon$ phase layer was observed to be more beneficial in reducing friction and wear.